Synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles by mixing chilli with rust iron extract to examine antibacterial activity

ABSTRACT

Iron oxide (Fe₈₈₀O) nanoparticles (IONPs) were synthesised via a chemical reaction by mixing hot red pepper with waste rust iron extract at 300°C for 1.5 hours to study the resulting antibacterial activity. The structural and optical properties of the NPs were characterised using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The antibacterial activity of the IONPs was examined in comparison with that of gram-positive; Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, and gram-negative; and Escherichia Coli and Klebsiella pneumonia bacteria. Additionally, this information was used to investigate the accumulation of spent iron extract from the environment, its conversion into an efficient basic material to synthesise Fe₈₈₀O NPs, and their utility for medical treatments. The results yielded important information regarding the properties of IONPs (e.g. crystallite size, particle size, energy band gap, and absorption band strength) and their inhibition on both bacterial strains. Finally, this research will pave a new path for exploring how to utilise rust iron and transform it from harmful to beneficial material.

KEYWORDS:

• Iron oxide NPs
• rust iron
• hot red pepper
• antibacterial activity
• gram-positive
• gram-negative

Acknowledgments

The auther(s) would like to thank MustansiriyahUniversity (www.uomustansiriyah.edu.iq) Baghdad-Iraq for its support in the present work.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).